Can daily writing help with depression?

I know I ramble on about how bad I am feeling all the time and the highs and lows of daily writing, but I do believe that it is a healthy pursuit and that writing each day can help your depression.

Men like me feel they are not able to share their feelings. Identifying and dealing with our mental health is becoming more acceptable and mainstream, but it is still hard to admit I am struggling and even harder to explore why.

I was interested to read what benefits others had said about their daily writing habit and what benefit it gives them and I found a good Medium post by Darius Foroux where he said this:

Nothing will help you to get to know yourself more than translating your thoughts into words. When you force yourself to write every day, you automatically become more aware of your thoughts.

I agree with this statement 100%.

How can writing help with depression?

Committing to writing daily focuses your mind and helps you to solidify your thoughts and feelings. If you are suffering from mental health issues it is likely that your mind and thoughts are a mess of confusion, stress, anxiety or white noise.

Writing down how you are feeling helps make sense of the scrambled noise and forces you to think.

When I am in my depressive states, the world just seems to float past. Days and weeks can go by when I feel locked inside my own head, staring out at the unusual, grey world through thick frosted glass.

Since I have started keeping a daily writing habit where I am free to anonymously share my inner demons and feelings, I have more clarity, can see things more clearly and can recognise my own feelings better.

How to get started.

If you are a new visitor to this site, sign up for free and start your writing habit.

There is no pressure but try to come back every day and write about how you are feeling; sharing is good - many people with depression feel they have no-one to talk to.